Self-Esteem and Body Image

“Self esteem” literally means “how we honor and believe in ourselves”. Self esteem is all about how we feel about ourselves. There are two kinds, quite simply ‘high’ self esteem and ‘low’ self esteem, though most of us move up and down a lot at different times in our lives!

We can measure self esteem by thinking about how we can impact or affect our communities, like our families or schools. For example, if you’re an artist you can make an impact by offering to help with creative projects. Every person is valuable in their community because they have talents that nobody else does – by working together, we can make our communities the best they can possibly be. Always remember that you are worth so much.

Sometimes people measure their self esteem by comparing themselves to other people. We can think, ‘if she has a prettier nose and he is better at sports, where does that put me?’. Well, it puts you in a category of your own, a unique place to be. Besides, the one with the prettier nose is probably jealous of your hair and your music skills, or whatever.

Comparing yourself to other people can be harmful because you will never truly ‘measure up’. You’re you, you’re not anybody else. Instead, try to focus on your own strengths, and use them to the best you possibly can.

A great way to gain high self esteem is to get ourselves into places and amongst supportive people that care about us and encourage us when we don’t feel brilliant.. Check out what we’ve got to say about high and low self esteem in our article “High and Low Self Esteem”.

Remember that you are important. Your life counts, and you can make a difference in this world. If you ever need to talk about this or anything else, feel free to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.

There are two types of self esteem: ‘high’ and ‘low’. We encourage you to strive to have high self esteem, because you are such an important addition to this world! Check out what we’ve got to say about high and low self esteem. Do you have high or low self esteem? Is your glass “half full” or “half empty”?

High Self Esteem

High self esteem means that you believe in yourself and know that you are a great addition to this world. You recognize that you might have a few weaknesses, but you also have a lot of strengths which really shape up who you are. Your glass is always “half full”.

It’s great to have a group of friends and family that support your self esteem by recognizing your strengths. The world would be a boring place if everybody had the same strengths and weaknesses! Here’s an example of friends encouraging each other’s self esteem:

Naomi says “I’m really good at organization and planning, but I’m not the greatest cook. So, I can plan my friend’s birthday party and I’ll ask Mike to cook for us.”

Mike on the other hand says, “I’m a great cook and I love to decorate, but I can’t plan my friend’s birthday party – I would never know where to start! I wonder if Naomi can plan it and I’ll make the food?”

The two friends recognize their own strengths as something they can contribute, and recognize their weaknesses as an opportunity to encourage their friend’s strengths. This is an awesome way to help build self esteem.

Low Self Esteem

Low self esteem means that you don’t believe in yourself. Often you compare yourself to other people, and find that you ‘don’t measure up’, which is discouraging. You tend to focus on your weaknesses, and don’t focus on your strengths. Your glass is always “half empty”.

If you feel that you have low self esteem, remember this: you are such a valuable addition to this world. Just like everybody else, you are good at so many things which will help make our world a better place. You don’t have to live with low self esteem – you can start working toward getting high self esteem today! Read above what we have to say about high self esteem, and try to see if you can make that happen in your life. For some other great ideas on building your self esteem, check out our article “Self Esteem: Where Can I Get More?”

Remember that you are important. Your life counts, and you can make a difference in this world. If you ever need to talk about this or anything else, feel free to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.

If you feel that you have low self esteem, you can begin working towards gaining high self esteem. You are the answer to the low self esteem – you can change how you view yourself, by starting today! Here are some great suggestions for how to gain a higher self esteem:

• You will believe what you tell yourself: if you hear something often enough, you will begin to believe it. So, tell yourself that you are good enough! You are not lying! You are worth so much and are a valuable addition to this world.
• Be positive: see the best in every situation. If you believe that you are a great help to your community, others will see you as a great help too.
• Cut yourself some slack: don’t be hard on yourself. You don’t need to be perfect, and it is okay to make mistakes!
• Decide that you are important: act like you are making a difference in this world.
• Be comfy in your own skin: who ever decided that there is one way to look and dress? Be individual and unique: inner confidence looks great on the outside.
• Learn your strengths: if you always focus on your weaknesses, you’ll forget what your strengths are. If you’re good with technology, focus on that instead of focusing on your poor singing voice.
• Try new things: maybe you have a hidden talent you wouldn’t have known about if you didn’t try something new. Find opportunities in your community and try them out!
• Try, try again: if you don’t succeed the first time, pick yourself up and try again. That doesn’t mean trying to be a pro wrestler if you’re a five foot weakling – find your strengths and work on them.
• Find a cause: find something that you can support, like a charity. This will help you remember that you have a deep meaning in this world and can truly make a difference.
• Find positive friends: it’s a lot easier to think positively when you are around people that think positively and support you.
• Set realistic goals: maybe you won’t become an astronaut tomorrow, but you can set a weekly goal to do your homework and a monthly goal to do better in school, a yearly goal to improve your average by 10% and a larger goal to get into college. Big goals are easier to achieve by breaking them up into smaller and more realistic goals. How do eat an elephant? – one bite at a time.
• Find a positive role model: ask someone you trust to support you when you feel let down.

Remember that you are important. Your life counts, and you can make a difference in this world. If you ever need to talk about this or anything else, feel free to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.

There is so much pressure in this world to get ‘the look’. The problem is, ‘the look’ is always changing! Us girls often find it tough to accept how we appear, and weight can be a big part of this.

First, we need to accept that all people come in different shapes and sizes – we are all truly beautiful, inside and out. If you feel that your weight is truly a health concern, have a chat with your doctor to find out your choices to live a healthier life.

Often, us girls think we are overweight… even when we aren’t. It’s as if we’re chasing after a standard we’ll never achieve. It can be hard to understand what our healthy body weight is, so if this is truly a concern for you, talk with your doctor who can help you determine what foods to eat and amount of exercise to have, in order to live a healthy life.

It is important to remember that food and meals should bring us pleasure – we shouldn’t feel bad about what we eat, but we should be eating in moderation and healthy varieties. It can be dangerous to skip meals, and purging (throwing up) our food after eating will cause us health problems. If you feel that you have an eating disorder like what we just described (skipping meals is called “anorexia”, and purging your meals is called “bulimia”), talk with your doctor.

You are beautiful! Never forget that.

Remember that you are important. Your life counts, and you can make a difference in this world. If you ever need to talk about this or anything else, feel free to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.

There is so much pressure in this world to get ‘the look’ – guys often tell YLC they feel that they should be more muscular in order to fit in. Other guys feel that they’re overweight and want to lose lots. Guys often find it tough to accept how they look.

First, we need to remember that all people come in different shapes and sizes. You’re unique, inside and out. If you feel that your weight is truly a health concern, have a chat with your doctor to find out your choices to live a healthier life.

A lot of guys have considered taking weight supplements or eating with very strict diets – the ones that are supposed to build body weight and muscle. The problem is, these supplements and strict diets can have serious side effects and hurt your health. If you’re trying to build muscle and get in shape, it’s important to talk to your doctor or a fitness professional about how to do this in a healthy way.

Remember, if something looks too good to be true, it probably is. There is only one way muscles can experience healthy and long lasting growth, which is through careful and measured exercise. There is no quick fix!

By taking care of your body, eating well and exercising regularly, you can enjoy the healthy lifestyle that you deserve.

Remember that you are unique, and that your life counts! You don’t need to try to live up to an unachievable standard, but it is great to strive to live a healthy lifestyle.

You are important. Your life counts, and you can make a difference in this world. If you ever need to talk about this or anything else, feel free to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.